Welcome to Bread the MaryJane Way, a method for making true sourdough bread launched in 2009 in our MaryJanesFarm Feb/March magazine (themed Simply Bee). Join in on the discussion below to share your experience and successes!

There's still one last page of instructions coming that we'll get posted tomorrow. Make sure you come back and read the helpful hints it contains before you get started!

"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, red wine in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming 'WOO HOO, what a ride!'"

I think Simply Bee is one of the issue names of MaryJanesFarm magazine. Also- Kristin I think you can use well water but you could try it both ways and see which one does better.

When I had my sour dough, it wasn't heavier than "normal" bread by any means- in fact it was much lighter. I think it all depends on how active you starter is. If it isn't active enough give it a few extra days to let the yeasties beasties multiply more.

Regular flour has been through more processing than organic flour and has lost a lot of the natural yeast. If you use regular flour the results will not necessarily turn out. Organic flour is best and has much more natural yeast.

Hello girls....I typed in the addy for the bread and it did not work...it is...www.breadthemaryjaneway.orgWhere do I order Organic flour?After I posted, I clicked on it, and it lead me right to here,,,HA,HA,Ha!!!LOL!!! I am a ?????????

I have a question....I live in Texas and right now the weather is jumping up and down (lows in 30 highs in 60-70)...will that effect my starter? I live in an older house (very drafty) stove is right by north side back door ...so cannot leave it in the kitchen area..maybe a bedroom on the south side of the house might work (away from windows)...??janieefarmgirl #390

I just read through the excellent article and it really answers a lot of questions! If you read the intro page right above the picture there are some words in green that say "Lets get started" Click there and it opens up the article for you. Once you read through the article, the url www.breadthemaryjaneway.org will lead you back to this topic so that we can continue the discussion!

When I rec'd my magazine this week I was so excited! I love sourdough and usually use the type that involves yeast...but this will be so much better!! I can't wait to start the mother! Has anyone started any yet?

Finding organic anything is a chore for me since all the stores are an hour away. I'm not even sure if the regular grocery stores in Boise carry King Arthur Organic flours and I don't shop the expensive stores. So, here is a link and I don't think they're prices are bad at all!

Janie, yes weather and temp. changes like that do effect the starter, but keep it in a draft free place and you should do well. Even if it does mess with your starter, it's tough and will bounce back *U*

Kind of embarrassing question though- how cold is too cold for the starter? My kitchen gets pretty cold.. all right, my house gets pretty cold (like 40-50F cold) when we don't have the stove going. Will my starter work, or should I just wait til the weather warms up a bit before trying this out?

I seem to remember the goldminers in Alaska keeping their starters alive through the winter, so my wild guess is that it should be alright but...

That should be fine Meg- you can always wrap it in a towel for some insulation if you get worried, and just keep an eye on the starter- If it doesn't look like it is quite active enough on the day schedule mentioned in the article, giver her a few more days as the cold will slow growth down a bit. Moving her to a warm environment by the stove during the day will help though. Also if you have the stove banked at night and it doesn't get too hot, perhaps she could over night on the stove to get the residual heat.

I will definitely vouch for the necessity for organic flour and purified water....On my first-ever attempt to make startet I used tap water and grocery store-brand flour. It turned black in a week. Lessson learned.I'm blessed to find King Arthur in all the grocery stores (even in 20-lb bags) - they are a Vermont company so fellow New England farmgirls should be able to find it.

I can't tell you how pleased I am to see this article about the sourdough starter! One of my goals has been to make sourdough pancakes and bread like my Grandma (my mom's mom) did. I don't know how many times I have tried to get a starter going but it would usually fail and turn black. I never once thought it might be the flour and water I was using. My grandparents lived in the Ozarks and were very self-sufficient. They grew and grounded their own flour. So it's no wonder she had a very active mother. I can't wait to give it another try! Now-a-days, my other grandma likes to eat sourdough bread so it will be neat to be able to make her some as well.

WooYoo, can't hardly wait to get started!!

BuffalomaryFarmgirl Sister #293

You can take the farmer's daughter off the farm but you can't take the farm out of the farmer's daughter!!